An Eastern Exposure
by Zofie C. Field
Summary: Kate is having a weird day... and not just because of all of those bears.  Entire story posted at once, written for the Journey Story Big Bang on LJ.
1. Chapter 1 & 2

Written for the Journey Story Big Bang on livejournal. The story has a bit of a fantasy/sci-fi/suspend your belief in reality tinge to it.

Check out the beautiful story artwork by hutcherie: hutcherie . livejournal . com / 11295 . html

_Note: None of these characters are mine_

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><p><strong>An Eastern Exposure <strong>

**Chapter 1 – An Eastern Exposure**

Kate Beckett woke up to the sun on her face, which, as anyone with an eastern facing bedroom window can tell you, is a rather pleasant sensation. Keeping her eyes screwed shut against the bright light, she stretched a little before sitting up and swinging her legs over the side of the bed. She stood up and took two steps before slamming face first into a bureau.

You see, Kate Beckett doesn't have an eastern facing bedroom window.

Kate's eyes popped open wide with surprise as she reached out a hand to steady herself on the bureau. Her mind instantly flashed back to her college days when she'd woken up in a stranger's bedroom far more times than she'd care to admit. Grimacing at her own stupidity, she took a quick look over her shoulder towards the bed.

"Shit!" Kate swore loudly, thumping her forehead down on the top of the bureau.

There was a rustle of sheets from the bed behind her, and she swore again, this time quieter, but the damage was already done.

"Kate?" Castle sat up in the bed and peered at her through bleary, (dare she say it) sleep-deprived eyes.

"This isn't happening. This isn't happening. This isn't happening." Kate muttered to herself, her words muted slightly by the wood of the bureau.

"You look cute in my boxers," Castle commented nonchalantly. Kate vehemently ignored him.

"These are nice sheets," he said a moment later. "How did I end up here? How did _we _end up here? This is not how I remember last night ending. Wish I could remember. I didn't think I'd had that much to drink. Certainly wouldn't have wanted to forget this. Wow, ouch, where did that come from? Your nails must be sharp. Kind of hurts…" He rambled on and on randomly, seemingly unaware of her distress. She would have pegged him as a suave morning-after type, but apparently she was wrong. "You've got a nice bedroom. I totally had you pegged as a blue and white kind of girl. Very Cape Cod of you."

His words filtered in through the din of her mortification, and she turned towards him suddenly.

"My bedroom?" She wrinkled her brow, confused.

Castle's brow immediately mimicked hers. "Um, yes?"

"Open your eyes sleeping beauty; we're in your bedroom."

Castle glanced around, and then shook his head at her. "For a Detective, this is a little worrisome. I don't wear those," he pointed a line of high heels resting by the door, "or those," he gestured towards few pairs of lacy underwear resting on top of a full laundry basket, "and she is definitely not my mother." He gestured towards a picture frame on the nightstand next to Kate's hip. She picked up the photo and stared down at the smiling faces of herself and her mother from years before.

"This isn't your bedroom?"

"No, definitely not. I'm not really understanding the confusion here."

"Castle, this is definitely not my bedroom either." He still looked confused, so she pointed out the window. "Look. This isn't even my street."

Castle made to get up from the bed. "Wait!" Kate shouted at him and he froze in place. She turned her back to him and returned her forehead to comfort of the bureau. "I believe I'm wearing your boxers, which means you most decidedly are not."

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><p><strong>Chapter 2 – A Predicament<strong>

When Kate turned around, Castle had pulled on his jeans and was sitting on the edge of her bed, "Now that we're both decent, shall we address the problem at hand? Shouldn't you have your gun out by now?"

Kate rolled her eyes at him. "For goodness sakes, Castle. No matter what happened last night, I'm sure I was a willing participant. I'm not actually going to shoot you."

His mouth twitched for a moment as he fought not to smile at her words, but then his eyes grew serious. "Not exactly the problem I was referring to, though I would very much like to discuss this further. But first, maybe we should figure out to whom this bedroom belongs? Especially since neither of us seems to remember how we got here."

Kate stared at him for a moment as his words sunk in. Then in an instant she was lunging for her gun which rested on the nightstand. "Shit! Where the hell are we?" She made her way to the door, pressing her ear against it and beckoning Castle to move to the other side.

On her signal, Castle whipped open the door and Beckett advanced quickly into the hallway.

Beckett stopped dead. "What the hell?"

Castle moved out of the doorway to stand next to her. They stared at the scene in front of them.

"Beckett? This looks like - "

Kate cut him off. "I'm well aware of what this looks like, Castle."

They were standing in her apartment, which was only worrisome for one reason - it had been blown to smithereens over a year ago.

Flabbergasted, Kate and Castle walked slowly through the apartment. Everything looked like it had a year ago before the explosion. Maybe there was a blanket on the couch she didn't recognize, or a few magazines she didn't remember subscribing to, but overall, nothing stood out. They were in her old apartment, as unbelievable as it may be.

Their last stop on the apartment tour was the kitchen, where Kate leaned against the counter, and closed her eyes momentarily. When she opened then, she noticed something she'd missed before. Kate sprang forward and snatched a bottle of tequila off the countertop near the sink.

"What is this?" she asked accusingly, spinning around and shaking the bottle at him.

The tag hanging from the bottle was swinging wildly as Kate moved, but Castle could just make out the neat line of script.

_I hear there's a thunderstorm brewing. Want to relive old memories? - Rook_

Kate stalked towards Castle menacingly, brandishing the bottle like a weapon. "Is this some sort of sick joke?"

He raised his hands in defense. "Kate, think about this," he said, moving away from her slowly. "I swear I did not erase your memory and then reconstruct your exploded apartment down to the very last detail. I'm a little bit eccentric at times, but I'm not insane."

She glared at him for a moment, until her eyebrows began to furrow in thought. Slowly, she took a step back and shook her head as though to clear it. "You're right, that would be insane. Even for you. Sorry."

At that moment, her cell phone started ringing loudly in the bedroom.

"Saved by the bell," said Castle, melodramatically swiping the back of his hand across his forehead.

"Beckett." Kate answered the phone, all business despite the fact that she was standing in an apartment that didn't exist. She listened for a few moments, and then jotted an address down on a scrap of paper.

"We'll meet you two there in twenty. Oh, and Esposito, quit the Nikki Heat bit. This is definitely not the morning for it." She snapped the phone shut, annoyed.

"Let's go, Castle."

"But," Castle stammered, gesturing to the apartment.

"I know, but murder calls. We'll figure out the meaning behind this little joint hallucination of ours later. Go find your shirt."

Castle saluted her and headed towards the bathroom. When he reached the door, he turned and winked at her. Nodding towards the boxers she was still wearing, he said, "Oh, and Beckett, I'm going to need those too."

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	2. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3 – Theories**

"Here's what I'm confused about," Castle said as they pulled up to the address thirty minutes later. "The Beckett I know would have had us getting blood tests and MRIs right now to find out whether this drugs or head trauma. The Beckett I know would be methodically piecing together a timeline to fill in our missing memories. The Beckett I know would have twisted my ear, or possibly another body part, off for even the suggestion of our apparent activities last evening."

"We wake up in my apartment that has been ashes for a year, with no memories of last night, dressed in essentially nothing, and you're confused me? Big picture here, Castle." Beckett opened the car door.

"Seriously, Beckett." He grabbed her jacket and pulled her back into her seat. She regarded him for a moment and then chose her words carefully.

"This is obviously a dream, Castle. And frankly, it's going a hell of a lot better than my dreams usually go. As odd as this all seems, usually you'd be dead by now. Or Dad. Or Alexis. Or Mom all over again. Waking up nearly naked next to you is terrifying on many levels, but it sure as hell beats the alternative. I figure, I'll ride it out and enjoy the juicy parts," he smirked at her and she punched his shoulder playfully, "Get your mind out of the gutter, Castle. I mean, if I'm stuck in some wacked out dream world alternate reality, I might as well do what I do best. Solve murders. And speaking of murders," she pointed over her shoulder with her thumb, and with an uncharacteristic hop in her step, she slipped and headed towards the crime scene.

"Hold up," Castle called, jogging to catch up with her. "A dream? I don't buy it. This has got to be something better than that."

"Care to share a theory with the class, Castle?" Kate asked, raising an eyebrow.

Castle opened his mouth to speak, but hesitated. "Not at the moment. I'll wait for a little more evidence." Kate spun on her heel and continued on her way towards the yellow tape.

"Yo, Esposito! Ryan!" Kate called to the guys who were leaning against the building drinking coffee, obviously waiting for her and Castle to show up. The boys glanced over their shoulders, looking momentarily confused. Ryan headed over while Esposito walked to the curb to throw out their empty cups.

"Morning, guys. Who are you yelling at?" Ryan asked brightly when he reached them.

"Yo, Raley. Did you fill them in yet?" Esposito joined them. "This is an ugly one, Nikki."

Kate's jaw tensed for a moment. "I told you to quit it with the Nikki thing."

Esposito frowned slightly, but nodded. "Whatever you say, Boss."

Esposito began to brief them. "Three victims found dead this morning, first Holmes Donahue, found at 3 o'clock this morning, and then Tara Carter, found at 4:30. Each was found in a different neighborhood of the city, but all in ritzy apartment buildings. We're talking doormen, top tier nannies, personal chefs. Nothing appears to have been stolen from the first two scenes. Our vic here is Margret Captan, seventy five years old. According to the doorman, she's lived here as long as he can remember. Her daughter is on her way now to check if anything's missing."

"But wait, there's more," Ryan continued. "Here's the weird part. All three victims appear to have been attacked by some sort of animal. Torn furniture, tufts of fur, muddy tracks, brutally mauled bodies - the works. When we couldn't get you on the phone this morning, we called a local wildlife expert in to consult. He's going to meet Lauren down at the lab this afternoon."

Ryan and Esposito finished speaking and waited for a reaction. Kate's brow had crinkled sometime around "brutally mauled," and now her mind visibly whirring.

"Why does that sound familiar?" she murmured, more to herself than to them.

Castle shifted his feet nervously. "Um, Kate?"

"Hmm?" she muttered, distractedly.

"I have a theory, but you're not going to like it."

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	3. Chapter 4 & 5

**Chapter 4 – An Interlude**

The previous night at the Old Haunt:

"_Castle, that's completely implausible." Beckett sat on a stool in the empty Old Haunt, leaning on the bar. She took a sip of her drink to go along with her eye roll. Castle stood on the other side of the counter, wiping glasses. He smiled at her, savoring the carefree Kate he so rarely got to see._

"_Maybe a little, but what's cooler than mauled by black bears? Here, listen to this." He set down the glass he'd been wiping, tossed the rag over his shoulder, and took a quick sip of his drink. Pulling a roll of typewritten pages out of his back pocket, he began to read: _

_For the first time in a long time, Detective Nikki Heat was truly stunned. She stood on the sidewalk outside the ritzy apartment building, staring up at the broken fourth floor window._

_ 'What do we know so far?' _

'_Not much, boss.' Det. Ochoa answered. 'Three victims, three different parts of town. All the victims were wealthy, and living in luxury, but so far nothing's been stolen. The third vic's daughter is here. We'll have her check the apartment when we're done.'_

'_All three victims were found in the same condition,' Det. Raley continued. 'All three appear to have been mauled by a wild animal. Local expert says he'd guess black bear, but he'll have to take a closer look with Lauren when we get the bodies into the lab.'_

'_Alright. Let's go upstairs to see the scene.'_

"_Mauled by bears, huh? How are you going to get yourself out of that one?" Beckett asked, interested in spite of herself._

"_Not to worry, my dear detective, I'll think of something."_

"_Well, while you're murdering rich New Yorkers with your claws, I'm going to get some sleep. See you in the morning, Castle." She slid off the stool and headed for the door, all of a sudden quite tired._

_Yawning, Castle called after her, "Wait up. We'll share a cab."_

**Chapter 5 – An Impossibility**

"Say that again?" Kate cocked her head, waiting for Castle to continue.

"We're in my rough draft of Animal Heat," Castle said gravely, obviously wary of her reaction.

"What?" Kate eyed him incredulously.

"I said, -"

"I heard you the first ten times, Castle," Kate interrupted, "but I don't believe it."

"But Kate!" Castle protested, "First the apartment, then the tequila, then those two calling you Nikki, and now filthy rich New Yorkers getting mauled by wild animals! It's the only explanation."

"Not the only explanation, Castle," Kate said, beginning to pace along the sidewalk. "I think the CIA is responsible."

"Really?" Castle's face brightened. Kate spun on her heel to face him.

"No. Of course not," Kate snapped, rolling her eyes, "How long have you known me?"

Castle opened his mouth to protest, but she cut him off. "This isn't some top-secret CIA stunt, and it certainly isn't your book. It's a dream, Castle. Pure and simple."

He looked crestfallen, but before he could lay out the evidence for her again, a shout rang out from down the street.

"Yo, Nikki?" Esposito hollered. Kate's head snapped up to find Ryan standing right next to her. She shot the boys an angry glare, but ignored it.

"We've got a body to attend to, if you two lovely ladies would care to join us." Ryan smirked and Castle grunted indignantly.

Kate rolled her eyes and headed towards the apartment building. If she was going to be stuck in the longest, most trying dream ever, she might as well do what she does best. Solve an imaginary murder. Put a dream killer behind bars.

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	4. Chapter 6 & 7

**Chapter 6 – Getting down to business**

The crime scene was a mess, even as crime scenes go. The furniture had been torn, pictures had been knocked from the walls, and the rug was soaked in blood. In the center of the chaos was the body, lying face up, sprawled on the rug. Three deep cuts ran down the victim's chest, and another two marred the face. Lanie was squatting beside the body, taking notes. She stood and gestured Beckett over.

"I should be able to tell you for sure when I get him back to the lab, but it looks like an animal attack. These cuts are consistent with claw marks, and there appears to be some sort of fur in the wounds. If it turns out not to be synthetic, I've got the wildlife consult on speed dial. "

"Okay. Thanks, Lanie. Call us when you have the lab results. "

Lanie raised a quizzical eyebrow at Kate, but chose to let the moment pass. She nodded to the medics who began to bag the body for transport.

Kate wandered away, looking at the photographs on the walls. Most were studio portraits of the victim and her family, ranging as far back as her own childhood by the looks of it. A few of the photos were more candid though. In one, three little girls in tutus posed on the building's front step. In another, four boys stood arm in arm outside a camp cabin. Several of the candid photos showed the victim and a young man, who Beckett took to be a grandson, at various points throughout the boys childhood. Beckett smiled sadly, glad that this was just a dream. At least these weren't real people about to face the very real trauma of losing a loved one to murder.

"Cute kids," said Castle, glancing over her shoulder at the photo of the boys at camp. Beckett murmered in assent, before setting the picture on the shelf and turning to him.

"So, Castle, who did it?"

Castle gave her an odd look. "Uh, the butler? It's a little early for speculation, even for me."

"I mean, according to your theory, this is your story, so you ought to know the ending, right? So how does it end? Who's our guy?"

Castle shuffled his feet and avoided her eyes. "I don't know."

Beckett laughed a little, "What do you mean you don't know? You said you had a plan."

"No, I said I'd think of something," he muttered, defensively with an awkward shrug. "Which I will. I just haven't yet."

An hour later, Kate stood in front of the murder board, muttering to herself as her eyes darted from photo to photo. Castle sat on the edge of her desk, watching her work.

"Nikki," Esposito called, walking towards her.

Kate continued to stare at the board, jotting something down in marker underneath one of the photos.

"Nikki," said Esposito again, a little louder this time.

Kate didn't flinch.

"Yo, Nikki," Esposito shouted, now only a few rows of desks away. Castle leaned forward and nudged Kate, who swore and dropped the marker. She looked at Castle, about to rebuke him. He gestured over his shoulder towards Esposito.

"This is getting very old," muttered Kate, realizing her error. "Uh, what have you got, Esposito? Ochoa? Whoever you happen to be today."

Esposito quirked an eyebrow at her, confused.

"So, Raley and I have been going through the vics' financials. All three vics used the same accountant in the city. Accountant is Matthew Kilm. He only works with a handful of families, all of whom are loaded. We looked at the records he sends the vics every month and compared those to the records on file at the bank. Looks like a percentage of the interest is being siphoned off each month. Guy's a total sleazebag in person. Raley and I are putting our money on him."

"Not smart to put your money on him if he's just gonna steal it," replied Castle.

Esposito chuckled, but Beckett just rolled her eyes.

"No, that's too easy," Kate said, more to herself than to the boys.

"Plus, I'd never write that terrible of an ending to this story, and we'd have solved the case way to fast. We can't be more than 100 pages in."

Esposito raised an eyebrow, waiting for Beckett's retort.

Kate gave the obligatory eye roll, but she was smiling as she did it. "Stop that," she said, pointing a finger at Castle. She addressed the two boys who were looking a little confused, "Good theory, but we need more evidence if the charges will stick. You and Ryan look into his alibi and see if who else had access to the money. Castle and I are going to talk to the families of the three vics again."

"Right…_ Ryan_ and I will get right on that. Let us know if you and _Castle _find anything interesting." Esposito nodded warily and headed off to find his partner.

**Chapter 7 – Coming up short**

"Hello Ms. Captan. Thank you for seeing us." Kate and Castle entered the elegantly decorated foyer of the daughter of the third victim. They'd already been to see family members of the previous two victims, but no one had been able to provide any information that seemed pertinent to the case.

"Please, call me Marlene." She ushered them into the living room, where tea was set out waiting for them. They settled onto the sofa, Kate flipping open her notebook, and Castle helping himself to a biscuit.

"We won't stay long. We only have a few questions," Kate said, addressing Marlene, but shooting Castle a dirty look as he reached for another biscuit.

"No problem at all."

"Do you recognize the names Mary Donahue or Michael Carter? Perhaps you knew one of their family members?" Marlene shook her head. Kate laid two photographs on the table.

"Do either of these individuals look familiar?" Again, Marlene shook her head.

"Ms. Captan, did anything seem amiss in the last few days? Was anything bothering your mother? Did she have confrontations with anyone? Any unsettling encounters?"

"No, nothing like that. My mother was seventy-two, and old for her age. The only thing she took pleasure in was that damn dog, and the only person she had any encounters with at all was my brother Jimmy. She was always dear to him. He's taken the news hard, of course."

"Thank you, Marlene. That will be all for now. Please give me a call if you think of anything else. Anything at all."

"We're so sorry for your loss," added Castle.

They stood and shook Ms. Captan's hand before taking their leave.

As they reached the car, Kate's phone rang.

"Beckett."

"Girl what's the matter with you today? Miguel told me you and Rook are doing some sort of pet name thing today. I'm all for kinky, but keep it out of my morgue, okay?"

"Lanie?"

"Mnm, don't start that with me again. That's Lauren to you, missy. Now listen up, because I'm in a hurry. I've got two bodies open on the table and another three chilling in the fridge waiting for me."

"Listening."

"So I talked with the wildlife expert – super nerdy, but kind of cute – and he confirmed that you've got a bona fide black bear on your hands. This particular species can be found upstate. He gave me the number of a wildlife center up there with the highest number of black bear sightings in the state. I guess there's a camp and a small preserve that are kept pretty much bear free, but once you head into the woods, they're relatively populous."

Kate scribbled down the name and number of the contact at the wildlife center and of the species of bear as Lanie continued.

"I went over all three bodies, and the damage on all three is consistent with an attack by the same species of animal. The claw marks match samples in the database. All three victims had been gouged numerous times, but what did them in were the cuts to the arteries. Each victim had at least one tear to a major artery. Judging by the pattern of blood loss, I'd say most of the defensive injuries were sustained before the damage to the arteries. Once the arteries were cut, they would have lost consciousness quickly, and bled out within minutes."

"Thanks, Lanie ." Lanie made a noise of disapproval on the other side and Kate stopped short. She rolled her eyes and amended, "I mean, Thank you, Lauren. Call if you find anything else?"

Castle grinned triumphantly as Kate hung up. "My theory is looking better and better, isn't it, Beckett?"

"Shut up, Castle."

Twenty minutes later, Castle and Beckett reconvened with Ryan and Esposito at the precinct. Kate added Lanie's findings on the manner of death to the murder board. In small print on the other end of the board, she wrote out the information on the black bear and the wildlife center upstate. She'd give them a call tomorrow to inquire about recent sightings and any attacks that had occurred in recent years.

"Please tell me you have something, guys." Kate slid into her desk chair, gratefully taking the coffee Castle passed to her.

"Matthew Kilm was an absolute bust. Financials look fishy, but everything checked out. He may not be the most honest of business men, but he's smart when it comes to his books. Plus, dude's got a rock solid alibi for all three murders," Esposito said, updating the murder board as he spoke.

"He bowls. Like, with a league. They were in a 24 hour tournament during the murders. Who does that?" Ryan looked annoyed.

"Ha, that sounds like something you'd come up with, Castle," Kate laughed, without thinking. Castle's face lit up.

"You're right, Detective. That does sound like something I'd write. As a matter of fact, this whole case does. I wonder why that could be…"

Kate rolled her eyes. "If this is your book, then would you care to enlighten us as to who killed our three victims? No? I thought not."

Castle plopped down in his chair, pouting. "I've only written through Chapter 10."

"Alright, guys, let's call it a night," Kate said, standing up from her desk and straightening her slacks. "We'll get Matthew Kilm back here in the morning to run over the financials again. Maybe there's something we missed."

Ryan and Esposito nodded gratefully, and, after placing a quick call to Mr. Kilm, headed towards the elevator.

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	5. Chapter 8 & 9

**Chapter 8 – End of the day**

Beckett slumped down in the seat of the cab and closed her eyes. It had been a very long, very weird day. The cab pulled up outside her apartment building, and before she could reach for her purse, Castle had paid the driver and was holding her door open for her.

"I'll walk you to your door and then walk to my apartment from here. We live closer here than we usually do, if my theory is correct, that is."

Beckett, who was too worn out to bother rolling her eyes, stood and walked with him up the front steps of the apartment. When they reached the top, Kate fumbled for her keys, suddenly feeling rather nervous. Any of her dreams that got to this point usually turned either very bloody, or very _very _steamy. She usually dreaded the former and (secretly) relished the latter, but she wasn't sure she had the energy to endure either ending. It was definitely time to wake up.

"Well, goodnight. Hopefully tomorrow morning will start out a little less fictional and a little more like reality," Castle said, interrupting her train of thought.

Beckett, finally managing to slide the key into the lock, looked at him incredulously. "A little like reality? I'm hoping for full-on reality. It's time for this dream to be over."

Castle nodded knowingly, glancing around. "I will admit, I thought our dream world would involve a little less murder. I had also kind of hoped it would clothing-optional."

Beckett blushed and moved to open the door.

"KISS HER ALREADY!" The shout pierced the otherwise quiet evening.

Castle and Beckett whipped around to find the source of the shout. Two old women were leaning out of a window just to their left, quite obviously eavesdropping.

"Excuse me?" Beckett looked at them in disbelief.

"WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR, SONNY? DON'T BE SHY. SHE'S ALREADY GOT YOU SLEEPING OVER EVERY NIGHT OF THE WEEK." The old women were obviously quite hard of hearing, and felt the need to broadcast the conversation to the entire block.

Beckett's eyes widened in shock. "This is by far the oddest dream I've ever had," she muttered.

Castle looked deeply embarrassed and whispered back. "I'm telling you, we're definitely in Animal Heat. They were in the rough draft of Animal Heat, but I threw them out because they were so annoying!"

"DON'T BE A PRUDE, REPORTER BOY! KISS HER. KISS HER. KISS HER."

The old women continued to chant like they were viewing a soccer match instead of an awkward encounter on the steps of their building.

"Pipe down!" Castle yelled back at them. He lowered his voice and whispered to Kate, "I don't think they intend on stopping. I can't believe I even wrote them in the first place! I should have shredded them instead of just cutting them out." Castle, who had had a hard day too, was looking rather distressed about the current turn of events.

Beckett, however, was finding it quite amusing. She chuckled, and stage whispered, "I think you better make a run for it, Castle, before I have to arrest us for disturbing the fictional peace."

The old women had begun a slow clap to go along with their chant, and Castle couldn't help but laugh as well.

"See you in the morning, Beckett." He ran down the stairs and jogged off down the street, pausing only to wave to Beckett and blow a kiss to the ladies in the window.

**Chapter 9 – Unsavory Business**

Bright and early the next day, Matthew Kilm sat across from Beckett in one of the interrogation rooms. Beckett had chosen an interrogation room instead of a conference room, because she still wasn't one hundred percent sure that Kilm wasn't involved in the murders, and she wanted him to be well aware of that. However, she left the door of the room open, hoping he'd cooperate. Yesterday had been a complete bust. She needed a break.

"Thanks for coming in again, Mr. Kilm. We appreciate the help."

Kilm crossed one leg over the other and sat up tall in his chair. "I'm just an honest business man, Detective Beckett, happy to help in any way."

"Right," said Beckett, fighting not to sound snide, "I wanted to ask you a few more questions about the three families in question. Their financials show nothing out of the ordinary, and there don't appear to be any transactions between the families. Is there anything that might have been done off the books?"

Kilm looked affronted (or rather, looked like he was trying to look affronted). "What are you implying, Detective?"

Beckett forced a smile. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply anything by the question. I was simply wondering if you knew if they families had had any personal conflicts or transactions in the past."

"No, no, nothing like that. Except of course for that business years ago. A little money changed hands then, but I didn't oversee the transactions."

"What business?"

Kilm leaned forward and adopted the tone of the gossip Beckett was sure he was. "Well, you see, it was all kept very hush, hush. Families like these can pay to have pretty much anything kept under the radar."

Beckett waited for him to continue, tapping her foot impatiently.

"You see, years ago, sometime in the 80's, I think, the Donahue boy, the Carter family's youngest, and one of the Captan kids all went to some camp upstate. Woodsy and whatever. These rich folk are all about turning boys into men." He dramatically rolled his eyes. Beckett ignored him. She was liking him less and less my the minute.

"Anyway, something happened in the last week of the summer. I don't know all the details of course, but a little boy died. Eaten by a bear or something like that. What was his name?" He searched for a moment, and came up empty. "Eh, whatever. The important bit was, the three boys had been friends with the kid who died. And I heard there was something fishy about the way the kid died, found tied to a tree or something screwy like that. The cops thought the boys had something to do with it. But lickety split, the families were stuffing bills in any mouth that was flapping, silencing the whole thing. The kid's death went down on the books as a wild animal killing, and that was that. I'm not even sure it made the papers."

Beckett was fuming by that point, fighting not to strangle Kilm's nonchalance right out of him. Through gritted teeth, she rose and said, "Thank you so much for your time, Mr. Kilm. That was very enlightening. I'll send one of my partner's in to ask you a few final questions."

She left and met Esposito outside the door. "Bring him some department coffee and let him sit there for an hour or two and then tell him he can leave."

Esposito nodded and headed into the interrogation room.

"I'm going to go round up those boys," Ryan said.

"No, wait on that. If they're involved, I don't want to spook them. For now, see what you can dig up on the incident at that camp."

"Heat, I've got something."

Beckett glared at Esposito, who was beckoning her over. "For a figment of my imagination, you're pretty damn annoying," she muttered under her breath as she headed his way.

Esposito laid a printout of newspaper from 1979 on the desk in front of her. "Check this out. August of '79. Michael Luce is found tied to a tree in the middle of the woods about half a mile from a boy scout camp upstate. Poor kid had been doused in honey and left for the bears. Literally. Coroner put cause of death down as three deep gashes to the chest, consistent with claw marks."

"And get this," said Ryan, joining them, "That's the only article ever published about the death. Just like Kilm said, it's like the investigation stopped dead in its tracks and the story just disappeared."

"Shit," Beckett sighed, sinking into an empty chair. She sat, eyes shut, breathing deeply. After a moment, she stood up abruptly.

"Prep Interrogation Room 1. I'm going to go pick up Marlene Captan to have another little chat, but this time, we're doing it on my turf. I want to know why no one's talking."

Kate slammed her hand down on the table.

"I'm sick of the lies, Marlene. You've sat by and watched us grasp at straws when you knew what this was about all along."

"I didn't want to bring it up," the woman replied primly. "The whole business was just so _unsavory_. Mommy drove out and brought Tyler home, and Father told us never to mention the whole affair again. And that was it." She shrugged and sat back in her chair, picking at a carefully manicured nail.

"Ms. Captan, I need to know the full story, and I need to know it now. I will have you arrested for obstruction of justice. They don't do manicures in jail."

"I don't think I like your tone, Detective."

Kate knew she was losing control. She'd never had any patience for the we-be-specials of the world. Taking a deep breath, she pulled herself back in.

"Ms. Captan, your mother has been murdered. I believe what happened at that camp twenty years ago is of vital importance to solving this case."

With a dramatic sigh, just to let Kate know how inconvenienced she felt, Marlene Captan recounted the story as best she knew it.

"Jimmy, Amos, and Stew all went to the camp the summer after fourth grade. They met a little boy there from the other side of town. The boy was naïve, in their eyes anyway, and they thought he was funny. I was away at school at the time, but Jimmy wrote to me almost every day that summer. He told me all about the little boy, and the games he, Amos, and Stew played on him. I think they genuinely liked him, to tell you the truth, but you know boys. They show affection in funny ways. I think they thought it would be a laugh, tying that boy to the tree. Maybe they thought they'd give him a bit of a fright. Malicious humor, little boys have."

Beckett audibly scoffed.

"Oh for goodness' sake, Detective, they were just little boys. It was just a silly game gone wrong, that's all."

"Just a silly game?" Beckett's eyes widened in disbelief. "Ms. Captan, when a child dies, it ceases to be a game. What about Michael Luce's family? Those were monsters in that forest, not innocent little boys."

"My brother isn't a monster, Detective. They were just three little boys playing a prank. Just a tragic accident, that's all. Now, if you don't mind, I have an appointment at the salon." She rose and walked to the door, where she turned back to Kate. "If you want details, why don't you go ask his mother. She was a blithering mess over the whole thing, trying to put those poor boys behind bars. I'm sure she'd be all too pleased to tell you exactly what you want to hear."

Gritting her teeth, Kate nodded to the uniform through the window. He opened the door, and the woman haughtily exited. Breathing hard, Kate slumped into a chair. She would have loved to arrest Marlene Captan as an accessory to murder (or for being an uppity snot), even if she only stewed in a holding cell for a few days. But, for now, there were bigger fish to fry.

"Boss?" Esposito peeked his head around the door.

Running her fingers through her hair and taking a deep breath, Kate finally looked at him. "Castle and  
>I are going to talk to Michael's mother. Track down all three boys. I want them in one interrogation room, with video and audio. I'm sick of playing games."<p>

Esposito nodded, and left without a word. Kate rested her head on her hands, closing her eyes. She heard him call for Raley, followed shortly by the ding of the elevator.

A moment later, she heard familiar footsteps entering the room. Castle came to stand behind her, kneading her shoulders gently. "Long morning?"

Beckett groaned in confirmation. "And it's not even noon."

* * *

><p>Thanks for reading!<p> 


	6. Chapter 10 & 11

**Chapter 10 – Home is Where the Heart is Broken**

"He really was a sweet kid."

Ann Luce sat on her worn sofa, wrapped tightly in a crocheted afghan, fingering an old Polaroid of a little boy in rain boots and a superhero cape. Even bundled up, she still looked cold. Kate figured she couldn't be more than 65 or 70, based on the age of her son, but she could easily have passed for 85. Chronic grief can take its toll.

"Mrs. Luce, Michael's death has come up in the midst of a current investigation. Would you mind answering some questions?"

"Margret Captan? Yeah, I heard about that witch getting murdered on the news yesterday. To tell you the truth, Ms. Beckett, she had it coming. The whole lot of them do. Ask me any questions you got."

"I'm sure it must be difficult to talk about, even after all this time, but would you mind going over everything you remember about the day Michael died?"

Ann Luce settled back in her chair, wrapping the blanket tighter around her.

"It was a Thursday, and hot as all get-out. The whole summer had been that way. Hot, and bone dry. 'Bout dinner time, the police come knocking on my door, telling me something's happened. Michael had been killed, they said. They brought me to the hospital to identify the body. Poor thing, looked so tiny there on the table." She paused to blow her nose before continuing.

"That night, I asked what had happened, and I wanted the truth. Cop working his case told me Mikey had been found tied to some tree, covered in honey. It was so dry that summer, nothing was growing. Cop figured the bear had gotten hungry and smelled the sugar. Cop said he didn't know what had happened, but they'd find out. 'Trust me,' he said, 'I'll get justice for your little boy.'"

Beckett gave her a moment to pull herself together before prompting, "And what did the police say, Mrs. Luce, the next time you spoke with them?"

"That's just the thing! I called back the next morning and they said the case was shut. There was some bear hair or something on Mikey's shoe, so they figured he musta kicked the bear when it was coming at him. Made the whole thing out to sound like it was his fault. Tell me, how does a shrimp of a kid tied to a tree provoke a bear? Huh? And how does that kid tie himself to that tree? Huh? I knew it was those rotten boys that'd done it. Mikey had told me about them, in his letters. He thought they were just a dandy bunch, but I can read between the lines as well as any parent. Those boys were having their fun at his expense."

"Did you mention this to the police, Mrs. Luce?"

Ann Luce scoffed. "Of course I did. But those cops were stuffed to deep into the pockets of Margret Captan to hear a word I had to say. Next day, I get a check for twenty grand and a nice death threat in the mail. Tell me what I should have done, huh? Who would have listened? So I threw the check in the shredder and closed my doors to mourn in peace."

Beckett still had a list of questions to ask, but the look of fresh heartbreak on Ann Luce's face made it clear the conversation was over.

"Thank you, Mrs. Luce. I'm sorry to have had to ask you to speak about it. I know grief like that never heals."

Mrs. Luce nodded, vaguely waving her hankerchief in the direction of the door.

They rose to leave, but as they passed the mantel by the doorway, Beckett paused. She picked up a picture frame and studied the photo. Two boys, four years old at most, sat on the front steps of an apartment building eating popsicles. The boys looked nearly identical.

"Mrs. Luce. Who are they?" Beckett held up the picture.

"Oh, that's Mikey and my other son, Lee."

"I didn't know you had another child."

Mrs. Luce shrugged, but her eyes darkened sadly.

"Lee took Mikey's death real hard. He couldn't breathe in this house after Mikey was gone. Told me he felt like he was half dead himself. So I send him upstate that fall to live with my brother, his Uncle Jerry. I always hoped he'd move back home, but he never did. He was only nine when Mikey died, but even at that age, there was nothing here for him. Not with Mikey gone. They were twins, see? Always were two halves of a whole."

Beckett sat on the edge of her desk, staring intently at the murder board, nearly boring a hole in it with her gaze. Castle surveyed her quietly from across the room. He made a mental note to write more downtime for Nikki Heat into the next novel. In the day and a half they had been here (wherever you care to believe _here_ may be), Beckett had already running herself ragged. He grabbed his coat and headed towards her desk.

"Let me buy you some dinner, huh? And don't say no. Who knows when you'll get another break to eat?"

"Castle, look at this."

Castle moved to stand closer to her, leaning over her shoulder to look at the map she had just pinned up onto the murder board.

"This," she said, pointing to a red dot on the map, "Is where Ann Luce's brother lives. That's where she sent Lee, and, by all accounts, where he still lives. And this," she moves her finger over about half an inch to a second red dot, "is where one of the few forests in the state where our particular species of black bear is found."

"I guess we're going upstate,"Castle sighed. "No chance of me talking you into breaking for dinner now, huh?"

Beckett slumped into her desk chair and nodded, letting her head fall forward onto her arms wearily.

"Find me some macaroni and cheese between here and upstate, Castle, and you've got yourself thirty minutes off the clock."

Castle smiled at the words which were muffled by her arms. "Comfort food it is."

**Chapter 11 – Unwelcome Revelation**

"I keep thinking about that picture of Michael and Lee," Beckett said, as they hurtled along the highway, headed upstate. "I can't imagine losing someone at that age. It was bad enough at nineteen, but at nine?" She shook her head sadly.

Castle reached out and squeezed her hand. "I know this case is just going in circles and we really need a solid lead, but I hope this isn't it. Plus, I can't see why he'd be involved. If it was those three boys who'd been murdered, then I'd be all over this guy. But our victims are still only loosely connected. It doesn't make sense. I just hope this guy has a rock solid alibi."

"Me too, Castle, me too. "

They settled into silence for awhile, until Kate's phone buzzed. She pulled it out of her pocket, and handed it to Castle, who opened the text and read it out loud.

"'_Yo, Nikki. Me and Rales have the three boys locked up in Room 1. Polite little twits came in quietly, but they're looking nervous. We're gonna see if we can't shake them up a bit. Get 'em talking.'_"

"I really don't get this Nikki Heat thing," said Beckett looking slightly miffed.

"I told you, Beckett, we're in – "

"Castle," she cut him off. "Not now. If you'd like to share a crazy theory, share one about the case, okay?"

"Aye aye, Captain," he responded, saluting her.

She rolled her eyes and turned back to the road, saying, "It's a wonder Alexis turned out normal."

Castle suddenly gasped and grabbed his phone out of his pocket.

"Geez, Castle. I almost drove us off the road. A little warning next time, please."

"Sorry," he said, distractedly, typing rapidly. He hit the send button with a flourished and then turned to look over at her, looking slightly uncomfortable. "I have a theory, but I don't like it."

"Care to share with the class?"

"Give me a few minutes."

He looked serious enough that she left him alone and turned her focus back to the road.

Ten minutes later, his phone vibrated. He opened the message and studied the contents quietly, scrolling down the screen every moment or two.

"Pull over up there and take a look at this, Beckett."

Kate flipped on her turn signal pulled into a rest stop. She shut off the car and leaned to see what he was looking at.

On the phone was a picture of a little boy in a sailor's outfit, standing next to a man in a navy uniform. The next showed the two men, both ten years older, beaming over a recently caught fish. The third showed the younger man, now recognizable as Amos Donahue, on his wedding day, standing next to the proud older man, who was well into middle age at the time of the photo and who distinctly resembled Holmes Donahue, the first victim. Castle closed the message and opened the next, which was also a series of photos. These showed a younger Stew Carter and the second victim, Tara Carter, at a series of events through his childhood – a visit to santa claus, his twelfth birthday party, posing after a high school soccer game. The final photo showed the two bent over a cake reading _Happy 85__th__ Grandma!_ The third message Castle opened contained photos of Jimmy Captan and his mother, Margret, the third victim.

After they had looked through the last of the pictures, Kate took the phone from Castle and scrolled through them all once more.

"Ryan and Esposito found them in the evidence boxes from the three crime scenes. They said there are dozens more just like those."

"There's only one person I have that many photos of – my mom. I must have hundreds of just me and her."

"Same with me and Alexis. You only take that many photos of you and the one person on the planet who is most important to you."

"Lee," Kate said, sighing.

"And Michael," Castle finished.

* * *

><p>Thanks for reading!<p> 


	7. Chapter 12 & Epilogue

**Chapter 12 – Into the Woods**

"Hello? Mr. Luce? Lee? NYPD. Open up!" Beckett pounded her fist on the door of the small cabin. Suddenly the door swung open. A tall old man in too much plaid stared out at them from the doorway.

"Is there a reason you're hollering like at this hour of the evening? Most respectable folk are sitting at a table eating dinner, not going around shouting and banging on doors."

"Are you Jerome Luce?"

"Yes, ma'am. And you are?"

"Detective Kate Beckett. Is your nephew home?"

"Lee. No. He's not here. Now you leave him alone, you hear?"

"With all due respect to your dinner time, Mr. Luce, I really need to speak with Lee. Can you tell us where he might be?"

Jerome Luce considered her for a moment before gesturing to the woods behind the cabin. "Headed out about an hour ago. Got a call from his momma, and just ran off. Hope you brought your bug spray," he said, shutting the door in her face.

Back at the car, Kate dug into the glove compartment and pulled out a hand gun, which she passed to Castle.

"The sun is setting, but there's no time to wait for backup. Not if Luce is our guy. Take this, just in case he's waiting for us."

Castle nodded, the gravity of the situation almost completely suppressing the flicker of glee in his eyes as he slipped the gun into his waistband.

Wielding flashlights, they headed past the house and into the woods, which started sparse but grew denser as time passed by.

They had been walking for almost an hour, and Kate was ready to call it quits for the night. Suddenly, Castle grabbed her arm, motioning for her to stay silent. He pointed into the distance, and after a moment, she saw it too. About a quarter mile away, a large shape lumbered slowly through the trees.

As quietly as possible, Castle and Beckett slowly made their way towards the shape. After ten minutes, they were within ten yards of it, and even in the near darkness, they could make out the furry snout and hunched shoulders of a black bear.

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea," Castle whispered into Kate's ear. She shushed him and took a few steps closer to the bear. He followed close behind, not wanting to be separated by even a few feet as darkness fell.

"Castle, do you hear that?" Kate asked quietly. They stood very still for a moment, listening. It sounded as though someone was weeping nearby.

"Kate, is that bear – "

"Mmhmm," Kate murmered, drawing her gun and inching closer until she was only feet from the bear. Castle looked at her panicked, beckoning wildly for her to back away, but she shook her head.

"Lee Luce," she said quietly, her voice sad, "You're under arrest for the murder of Margret Captan, Holmes Donahue, and Tara Carter."

"What?" Castle asked, speaking louder in his surprise than he had intended.

"Mr. Luce, stand and raise your hands in the air. Please, Lee."

The bear slowly rose and turned to face them, not a bear at all. Lee Luce stood in front of them, very much a man. He was wearing the skin of a black bear, which had been fashioned into a coat, with the fur of the bear's head serving as a hood.

Lee raised his arms to lower the hood, and Kate saw the three sharp claws still attached to the paws he wore like gloves. Slowly, he slipped his arms out of the skin and let it slide off his broad shoulders. He hung the fur over a tree branch with what seemed like reverence.

"I don't regret it," Lee said, his voice more of a growl, low and deep. "You can't understand what it is to lose the person who knows you best until they're taken away from you with no warning. Those men, foolish boys that they still are, don't understand what they took from me. So I made them understand."

Nodding to Castle, who drew his gun and kept it trained on Luce, Kate circled around behind him and latched her cuffs around his wrists. As she led him away, speaking his rights out into the night, she was struck by just how much he resembled the bear he'd embodied.

Back at the precinct late that evening, Lee Luce had confessed to everything, calmly and in detail.

Yesterday had been the thirtieth anniversary of his brother's death. Thirty long years he'd waited for the police to step up and see the truth, or for the guilt to drive one of the boys to confess. But thirty years came and went with no resolution. He figured thirty years was long enough to wait, and he took the matter of revenge into his own hands.

As Kate went to leave the interrogation room, she paused at the door. "I'll see justice done for your brother, Lee. I know you and your mother have heard that before, but I promise I'll see it through. I know what it's like, to lose like you've lost."

She exited the room, closing the door behind her.

Ryan and Esposito were waiting outside. They nodded towards the room where the three boys still waited. "What do you want done with them, boss?"

"Book them for murder," Kate said, evenly.

"It'll never stick. There's no evidence against them, none that survived the crooked cops thirty years ago, anyway."

"Book them," she said.

**Chapter 13 - Day's End**

"Well, I guess that's that," Castle said. A heavy air hung over the group, as they watched Lee Luce being led away by a pair of uniforms.

"It sucks when you almost wish you didn't catch the bad guy," Esposito said.

"Come on, man," Ryan said, resting a hand on Esposito's shoulder. "I hear there's lasagna waiting for us at my place."

The guys packed up their things and headed for the elevator. "Take it easy, you two," Esposito said, as he passed.

When they were alone, Kate turned to Castle. She hesitated for a moment, before saying, "Come over for a drink, Castle. I think we earned it." He smiled gratefully, and followed her to the door.

They walked for several blocks in quiet reflection before Castle broke the silence. "Gosh, I hope this is a dream, because that ending sucked."

Kate gave a sad laugh. "I'd definitely be reaching for the tissue box right about now."

After a few more paces, Castle peeked over at her and smiled mischievously. "Luckily, the final chapter always has a little bit of fun in it. Or sex. Or fun sex." He winked at her, and the tension of the day broke. She laughed like he'd been hoping she would.

They spent the rest of the walk holding a good-natured debate about dream vs. supernatural transport into fiction.

Just as they reached her block, the skies opened up and began pouring rain. Kate whipped off her high heels and they ran towards her building. After a moment, Kate was laughing too hard to continue. She stopped and looked up at the clouds.

"Yep," said Castle, shaking his sopping wet hair. "That's about right for the final chapter."

"Rain, Castle? Really? It's kind of cheesy," Beckett replied, playing along.

Castle turned and jogged a few paces back to where she'd stopped. "Why is it cheesy?"

"Everybody knows what's going to happen when it suddenly starts raining on the protagonists in the last few pages." She dropped her shoes and took a step towards him, their faces now only six inches apart.

Castle grinned. "Is that so, Detective?"

Kate rolled her eyes, stood up on her toes, and kissed him squarely on the mouth.

The kiss was quick, but Kate was already up the front steps and unlocking the door, before Castle's world stopped spinning. Grinning, he caught up with her. Together, they slipped inside her apartment, and not a moment too soon. Just as the door clicked shut, two nosey faces peered out of the window to the left, but there was nothing to see.

"I don't get it," Castle said, peering over her shoulder. "Why is the bedroom wrong?"

"Well if your theory is right, it's obvious, isn't it? You've never seen my bedroom, so you gave Nikki my apartment, but you had to do the bedroom from scratch."

"Ahhhh," said Castle, tapping his head. "I get it. So, how'd I do?"

Kate surveyed the bedroom critically. "All in all, not bad. The floral curtains are a bit much, though."

Castle smiled coyly and nudged her with his hip. "Maybe in the next book the bedroom will be a bit more accurate…"

Kate laughed and pointed into the living room. "Couch. Nikki or not, I still sleep with a gun."

Kate woke early the next morning, but kept her eyes squeezed shut for a moment. Then, slowly she opened one eye. In the dim light of the room it was apparent – she was back in reality. Her eyes snapped open completely and she bounded out of bed, grinning.

"Castle!" Kate shouted, whipping open the bedroom door. Her face fell as she was greeted only by the echoing silence of her empty apartment. She sighed and leaned against the doorframe.

"I knew it had to be a dream," she muttered. She'd ached for reality, and now that it was back, she was surprised at how disappointed she found herself. She found none of the relief she had been expecting.

As she turned back to her bedroom, her cell phone began to ring. The screen lit up with Castle's name.

"Hello?"

"Kate! Kate! We're back! We're back! I was right! I was right!" Castle was shouting into the phone, clearly as excited as she'd been just a moment ago. Kate collapsed onto her bed, a startled laugh escaping her lips. So it wasn't a dream after all.

"We solved the case! I have so much to write! We're back!" Castle was still shouting, though in his excitement, his voice had achieved a sing-songy quality. Kate could hear Alexis in the background ordering her father to put her down or she wouldn't share her pancakes with him.

Kate laughed harder, relieved to be back, relieved he was calling her Kate, relieved it had been real. Real? Well, she supposed, she could suspend belief for a little while. Interdimensional fictional transport did have its benefits.

"Let's do that again! Maybe we can go into every book I write!"

At this, Kate shot up off the bed. "Castle, no!"

"Kidding. Just making sure you were actually listening to me," Castle sang gleefully through the phone.

Kate laughed, lying back on her bed. "It's too early for this Castle. I need coffee!"

"As you wish, madame! See you in at the precinct in an hour! We need to brainstorm on a better ending for that case, because, man, that wasn't fun," he rattled on into the phone.

Kate started to tell him to stay home and write, but he'd already hung up. She smiled and shook her head in disbelief. Weirdest two days of her life, but definitely not the worst.

* * *

><p>Thanks for reading!<p> 


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